What Is A Power Suit & When Should I Wear One?

What Is A Power Suit & When Should I Wear One? Paul Anthony
2018-06-07T14:25:18+00:00

Power suit is a term that’s often-used, little understood, and arguably dated when it comes to suit styles. But what does it even mean?

Often associated with Wall Street bankers, shrewd lawyers or brash businessmen, it’s a catch-all often employed when suggesting a confident look. Sometimes it refers to a particular style that commands respect and other times it may not be so flattering.

In this guide, you will discover the Power Suit and what it really means. You will also learn how to wear one probably with tips and tricks for obtaining its full potential.

Feel confident and outgoing. Wearing a power suit should give you a psychological and sartorial edge over your peers.

Power Suit Guide
Reviewed by Charles-Philippe Bowles on
January 24th.

Rating: 5.0 ★★★★★

When Should I Wear A Power Suit?

The point of a power suit is to make a positive, lasting, bold impression on your audience. They are therefore useful tools for:

Job Interviews

Sales & Business Development Meetings

Presentations

We do not advise that you wear a power suit to a funeral. While it’s important to look your best at a funeral, you want to look subdued as well. Out of respect for the deceased and his/her family, wearing a power suit would be too bold a move.

It may also be a bit much to wear such a suit on a date, as the look is more imposing than it is sexy or romantic.

Power Suits & Suit Cuts: British, Italian, Or American?

If you haven’t done so yet, we invite you to take a look at our guides to British, American, and Italian (also known as Continental) suits. These pages will give you in-depth information as to the nuances of each suit “nationality.”

It’s worth discussing which suit cut might be best for a power suit. Our take is that British or new American is the way to go, while Italian and “old” American (that is, sack suits) are not. Why?

British and new American suits share many similarities, one of which is a muscular, almost militaristic regality. For the purposes of a power suit, this is perfect because that’s precisely the image you’re looking to project.

Sack suits, by virtue of their shapelessness, give off a sense of anonymity as opposed to power. Traditional Italian suits, with their slimmer fits, give off too sexy a vibe to function well as a power suit. They can turn the wearer into, as Alan Flusser puts it, “…a walking phallic symbol.”

The Power Suit By SharpSense

A while back we had the pleasure of reviewing a suit and some shirts from the online made-to-measure company SharpSense. We wrote up a full review, and it’s getting a mention again because, with the right accessories, it’s the perfect power suit. Here’s why:

It’s a simple charcoal herringbone suit. The color is dark enough to exude the confidence you want, and the subtle texture of the herringbone adds visual interest while remaining conservative.

The fit is modern and flattering but isn’t overly tight. Again, you want confident, not sexy.

The details are classic and conservative: notched lapels, straight flap pockets, side vents. Though they’d be handsome, note the absence of details such as a ticket pocket, contrast stitching, etc. Unless you’re running your own business and / or are at the C-level of a company, we don’t recommend wearing suits with such details.

When you take the details of this SharpSense suit and combine them with bold and/ or conservative accents and accessories as we’ve done here, you get a powerful presentation that qualifies as a power suit.

Final Thoughts

The power suit today is not what it used to be during the Reagan administration. We’ve moved away from boxy fits and (American) football player-like shoulder pads to modern, trimmer cuts, but the aim of the power suit is the same: project confidence, competence, and strength to the world around you.

For more information on suit styles, we invite you to check out out style guide home page.

About The Author – Paul Anthony

Paul is a the founder and creative director of Bespoke Unit. His interests range from: suits, shoes, watches, sport, and travel. See his full profile here, and read latest articles.